They Voiced What??? Kyle Herbert

It’s hard to belive that it’s been almost a year since my last entry into this series. (Well not really, I’m notoriously lazy), but I hope to break that streak and bring this out more often! Today in They Voiced What??? we look at the partner in crime for the last inspiration for the series. Michelle Ruff, well known as Yoko Littner, was the object of desire by many a fan boy (present company included). So why not look towards the man behind her (unfortunately short lived) boyfriend: Kamina! That’s right, it’s Mr. Kyle Herbert!

Kamina is one of the most remembered characters from Gurren Lagann, and for good reason. The man behind his voice is also incredibly well known, and rather diverse! When glancing at his IMDB and Wiki page, I was shocked at how many characters he has brought to life. I was especially shocked to realize that he voiced Frederick from Fire Emblem: Awakening, a character who is a vital member to my team! So let’s take a look at who else he has voiced!

I’ve always known that Mr. Herbert was the voice behind my favorite incarnation of Gohan, Adult Gohan / Great Saiyaman / Mystic Gohan. And when I first watched Blue Exorcist, I immediately recognized him as Bon. But I had no idea just who else he had voiced! From Kiba in Naruto to Ryu in Street Fighter, he’s done a wide ranger of brave heros, inspirational characters and mentors, and even a few goofballs. He even voiced Professor Oak in Pokemon: Origins!

This is just scratching the surface, too! Take a look at his Wikipedia or IMDB page to find a bigger list. He even has his own website, the Bid Bald Broadcast!

What’s up party people. Zeke here, letting you all know that aniRAGE.com is under construction! You may have already noticed the shiny new theme. On top of that, I’ve been working with Kayla to work on a fancy pants new gallery! But in order to do that, we have to download all the old pictures (made some edits and cut some of the chaff) before putting up the new stuff.

So for the time being, our old pics are in Pics, and the gallery is under Gallery!

And fret not, there’s a lot more going on behind the scenes that we hope to talk about soon! So stay tuned here to anirage.com and our Facebook page!

Zeke’s 2013 Year in Review – Gaming

2013 had a ton of amazing games that came out. Whether you are a fan of consoles, PCs, or a quick cellphone experience, there was something for everyone!

2013 Console/PC Game of the Year – Bioshock Infinite

It was a close tie between Bioshock Infinite and The Last of Us, but given that you can play Bioshock Infinite on just about anything you can put in your hands, it got the nod. A great story, amazing characters, and fresh graphics gave this an edge on just about everything else on the market. Bioshock Infinite also took a drastic turn away from the settings found in prior Bioshock installments, and to me it was a breath of fresh air. To top if all off, Elizabeth is absolutely adorable, and she gave a fresh new twist on the escort genre, reminding me a lot of Alex Vance from Half Life 2 Episode 2. If you haven’t had a chance, definitely pick up this amazing title.

2013 Mobile Game of the Year – Flow

Flow is a simple puzzle game, where you connect different colored dots to each other, but with 2 caveats: you can’t cross the streams, and you have to use every single space given to you. It sounds simple, but it’s much more difficult than you’d expect. I’ve killed hours on this game, and they are always releasing more and more content and levels, including the interesting Bridges mode. Definitely give this game a try!

2013 Handheld of the Year – Legend of Zelda: A Link Between Worlds

For most of the year, I was sure that Pokemon X & Y would win this one, but once I got A Link Between Worlds in my hands, I was hooked. This game gripping from start to finish. It gave a great new twist on the typical Zelda franchise items system, and the dungeons and bosses were nostalgic yet fresh. This has leapfrogged over A Link to the Past as my favorite game in long and storied Zelda franchise, and it’s definitely worth picking up.

That wraps up Gaming! I hope you enjoyed this walk down memory lane into the year 2013!

Zeke’s 2013 Year in Review – Music

I’m far from a music junkie. While others are out there discovery new bands and albums, I’m marathoning Flogging Molly and Beastie Boys. So unlike last year, this year I didn’t discover QUITE as much as before. But there was still a lot going on in music, so let’s get started!

2013 Song of the Year – Let It Go (Frozen Soundtrack)

Sorry, but I couldn’t not pick this. Frozen was far and away my favorite movie, and this song went a long way to making it have the impact that it did on me. This song shows the feelings and emotions that go through the mind of someone who has spent their entire life hiding just who they truly are. It’s something that I related to, and it was such a powerful song. I felt myself not only humming it out, but belting it out as well…when I was sure that there weren’t any prying ears around to hear my tone-deaf voice. This was was just pure magic, and for me, there’s no song that matched it in 2013.

2013 Album of the Year – Daft Punk: Random Access Memories

While it may not be the best album from Daft Punk, Random Access Memories was catchy, fun, and quite enjoyable. There were a lot of great songs in 2013, and a ton of amazing albums (including the Frozen soundtrack, which almost made this list, if not for the fact that I didn’t need to gush aout Frozen any more than I already have). This album is definitely worth a listen. And you’ll find yourself humming Get Lucky for days.

Come back tomorrow, when I’ll discuss Gaming! What’s my Game of the Year? Tune in to find out!

Zeke’s 2013 Year in Review – Movies and Television

Last year I did a year in review, and this year I almost forgot to do it! It’s a few weeks late, but I’ve found myself with a bit of time on my hands, so it’s once again time to look back fondly on the year 2013, and examine the best that it had to offer! Today we shall be looking at Movies and Television!

2013 Movie of the Year – Frozen

If last year you told me that my favorite movie from 2013 was a Disney movie, I probably would have laughed. And if you told me that said movie would cause me to get countless songs stuck in my head, causea princess to potential uproot Ariel as my favorite, and be seen in theaters multiple times, I would have called you crazy. But no doubt, Frozen was my absolute favorite movie this past year. It had everything you would want in a movie: great character development, characters you cared about and cheered for, compelling story, shocking twists, an amazing soundtrack…it had it all. If you haven’t seen this movie you really need to step it up and make it out to see it. Frozen broke a lot of age-old Disney molds, and the fact that it has become my favorite Disney movie by-far is a testament to it’s success.

2013 TV Series of the Year – Game of Thrones

I have a sad confession. I did not watch the first two seaons of Game of Thrones. One of the biggest reasons was because I’m lazy and didn’t pirate it, since I didn’t have HBO. But when Kerby got a job at Comcast, thus gaining us access to HBO, I was able to marathon it the weekend of the premier, just it time to catch Season 3 and be up to speed. And I was completely blown away. It was an insanely mind blowing experience. I was ashamed that I hadn’t watched it up until now. Season 3 had a ton of twists and turns in a series that already was well known for coming out of left field (for those who haven’t read the books, of course). The mere fact that two of my most hated characters made me like them, mostly out of pity, and don’t even get me started on the Red Wedding. Wow. I can’t wait until Season 4, and I hope everyone out that has had a chance to watch this amazing piece of television history.

2013 Episode of the Year – Doctor Who: The Day of the Doctor

Is it any surprise? The 50th Anniversary episode of Doctor Who was simply spectacular. I’ve watched it at least 5 times since it aired, including twice the day it came out (so that Kerby and his girl could see it). It had just about everything you could ask for (outside of Eccelston coming back). 10 and 11 worked amazingly together, and John Hurt was commanding in his role as The War Doctor. To top it all off, The Night of the Doctor, a short prequel webisode, brought back Paul McGann as the 8th Doctor, and it was so great to see him once again take over the screen. The story was twisty and turny (or would that be Wibbly Wobbly?) as one might expect from a Moffat written Doctor Who episode, but the added time it was given made it all flow out so well. From start to finish I was grinning from cheek to cheek. This was the Doctor Who I had been demanding for months, and it was very satisfying.

Well, that’s all for today. Tune in tomorrow when I’ll be discussing Music, and reveal my Song and Album of the year!

Yes, that means it’s still not time for Christmas decorations to go up. So stop it. Bad.

But more than that, it means that Holiday Matsuri is right around the corner!

aniRAGE is proud to once again be returning to Orlando for this great convention, and we’re once again pulling out all the stops! What are we bringing this year?

First off, there’s our classic Whose Line is it aniRAGE? Show! We’ll be bringing some great new games and old classics! And of course our Whose Line is it aniRAGE? Uncensored! 18+ show will be returning as well! We can’t wait to see what you guys makes us do.

Another classic aniRAGE show returns, this time with a holiday theme! That’s right, Anime XD makes it’s return to Holiday Matsuri! Kerby has cooked up some great holiday themed clips for us. And to join in on the fun, Dashi has been cranking out his own Christmas version of What the Japan? We’re calling it What the Christmas? and it’s sure to be a great time.

At the first Holiday Matsuri in 2011, we debuted aniRAGE Remembers: Holiday Specials! We sat around and reminisced about our favorite specials from the days of yore. Last year we stepped it up a notch, and pit your favorite specials head to head in the ultimate competition to crown the Greatest Holiday Special Ever. The winner: How The Grinch Stole Christmas narrowly beat out the Charlie Brown Christmas Special and Nightmare Before Christmas. It even beat out lauded favorite Die Hard!

This year we are taking it to the next level. It’s one thing to let the bigwigs up in Hollywood make a great holiday movie or special, it’s another thing to do exactly what they can’t do: make it our own! Of course, over the course of one panel we can’t film, edit, and direct a full special, but that doesn’t mean we can’t take your suggestions and spin together the plot of our own! So come join us as we try to draft together the greatest holiday story ever!

And speaking of holiday stories, how could anybody forget the classic holiday tale starring Arnold Schwarzenegger and Sinbad: Jingle All The Way? Seriously, how can you forget that? We’ve been trying to for years. This year at Holiday Matsuri, join us as we get together to laugh along with (but mostly at) this charming tale of Christmas Greed. Or whatever the moral was supposed to be. Maybe we’ll actually figure it out?

All this and more is waiting for you December 13, 14, & 15 at the Embassy Suites in Orlando! Check out HolidayMatsuri.com for more information!

Zeke’s Top 5 – Smash Bros Characters!

At E3 last week, we were greeted with the news of a brand new Smash Bros. game coming out for both the WiiU and the 3DS in 2014. Gamers all over the world are excited for this latest edition of the Nintendo character fighting game. Us here at aniRAGE have fond memories of huddling around the 64, then GameCube, and finally the Wii in order to yell, scream, and hate one another as we played through stage after stage. So to celebrate the occasion, I decided to take a walk down memory lane and recall some of my favorite characters to play as through the years!

Honorable Mention: Kirby!

In the N64 version of the game, my by-fav favorite character to play as was Kirby. He was quick, powerful, and had some devastating smash attacks. Combine that with his ability to fly back from certain doom, and Kirby was a package that spelled disaster for my opponents. Sadly, the Kirby that I knew and loved just hasn’t been the same since Melee came out. He became a lighter character, and thus was more likely to be knocked out of the arena easier than in the N64 version. My days as a suicidal Kirby bomber were numbered, and I just couldn’t find a playstyle with the Puff Cloud to make him a regular character anymore. But I will always remember my first, and favorite, Smash Bros.

Number 5: Captain Falcon

A mainstay since the first game, Captain Falcon was super-fast and super-strong. He had attacks that rivaled some of the heaviest hitters in the game, and his speed was unmatched for many of the games. He took some precise controls to truly master, but if you took the time to do so, he was a major force to be reckoned with. I enjoyed his ability to quickly dash out of harms way, only to run back in with a flying knee. And the sweet sweet fastisfaction of actually landing a Falcon Punch? Simple bliss. He’s not my first go-to character, but he deserves the first spot in my Top 5.

Number 4: Sonic the Hedgehog

My family was a Nintendo family growing up. We had Game Boys and Super Nintendos. Of course, I do still have the game gear I had as a child, but the Sonic games were always the game of choice if I visited a friend with a Genesis. So when Sonic was announced as a character is Super Smash Bros Brawl, I knew I would have to take him for a spin. And wouldn’t you know, he fit my playstyle just right. Dashing in, dealing damage, and dodging attacks. He was unique to the rest of the characters, and my only gripe was that he only appeared in the storymode at the very end. But on my first play through of the game, he dealt the final blow to the end boss, and that was satisfaction enough for me. Final boss, I guess you were just too slow!

Number 3: Luigi

The eternal second-tier Mario Bros is first-tier in my heart. Luigi was so strange. He floated through the air, and his moves never went very far. But if you in close, Luigi packed a mighty punch. His drop kick, jab, and smash attacks were all very powerful. He may not hit often, but when he does he hits very hard. And let’s not forget the Super Luigi Uppercut. The sound it makes when it connects still rings true in my ears. While he may not be the first in everyone’s eyes, he’s certainly the character I love to pick up and SMASH the competition with.

Number 2: Meta Knight

Now, I have to be specific here. It’s not just any Meta Knight that gets my heart all aflutter. It’s the Green alternate outfit. Why you ask? Because to me, he looks like Dr. Doom. And thus, whenever I smash someone off screen, I can yell out “KNEEL BEFORE DOOM!” and feel that much better about myself. I mean, who wouldn’t love to just smash face with Dr. Doom all day long? While Meta Knight is certainly not my best character, as I still haven’t gotten all the tricks of the trade down, I am currently undefeated whenever I pick the Dr. Doom colors. That being said, you probably could still kick my butt if you ever challeneged me. But even if you did, I’d have a hell of a lot of fun doing it. Because nobody beats Dr. Doom. I just let you win!

Number 1: Dr. Mario

The Doctor…is in! And no, this has absolutely nothing to do with my obsession with Doctor Who. I swear! I loved Dr. Mario before he was ever IN Smash Bros, and when he was a character in Melee I played him constantly. I think what makes him my most favorite is the fact that he wasn’t in Brawl, and thus my time with him was limited to Melee. We always want what we can’t have, as they say. Dr. Mario was a little slower than regular Mario, and didn’t have quite the distance with his attacks. But he packed a powerful punch. Plus spamming pills is one of the funnest things you can do in the game. The noise it makes…THE NOISE! Dr. Mario definitely needs to make a come back in Super Smash Bros for WiiU and 3DS. Hell, I’d even pay for a DLC that included him…and that’s not something I say very often! BRING BACK DR. MARIO, NINTENDO! OR ELSE!

Well, there you hvae it. My top 5 Smash Bros character, with an honorable mention. Stay tuned for more great updates here on anirage.com, and keep a look out, soon I’ll compile my list of characters that I’d love to see in this upcoming, and future, Smash Bros installments!

They Voiced What??? Michelle Ruff

I’ve recently begun the joyous (and feels-inducing) task of re-watching Gurren Lagann, one of my favorite anime series. And of course, as I’ve been doing lately, I like to find out the voice actors and actresses of my favorite characters and see what other characters they were. Some were familiar and recognizable. But some were very surprising. And since I enjoyed sharing my finds with others, it birthed the idea of this new blog series.

Today we are going to take a look at Michelle Ruff, the voice of Yoko Littner from Gurren Lagann.

Yoko was one of the most popular characters from Gurren Lagann, and was very memorable not only for her look, but her personality! Her voice is very distinct and memorable. But let’s take a look at some of the other character she has voice!

Chii AND Freya? Fujicakes? Cream the Rabbit and Rukia? And yes, that IS Carl Clover from BlazBlue. And the weird Alien Debbie from The Oblongs? Yep, that’s Michelle Ruff as well! And is that a Female Orochimaru that I see? You got it! Robots, boys, rabbits…and sex symbols like Katharine McBride and C-Viper! Michelle Ruff sure flexes her vocal muscles when she takes on a role.

And that’s not all! Take a look at her Wikipedia or IMDB page to find a bigger list, as well as her own personal website. And tune in next time for more They Voiced What????

At Holiday Matsuri 2012, we did our first ever presentation of Dashi’s own, What The Japan? Well, this awesome guy went and uploaded a good portion of it to youtube, so definitely check it out if you missed it!